It\u2019s the latest row to hit London\u2019s restaurants. You go out with friends or family to celebrate a birthday. Before coffee, the waiting staff bring out a cake you have supplied complete with a candle or three and sing Happy Birthday.<\/p>\n
Part of the service? A nice extra to be rewarded with a more generous tip?<\/p>\n
That\u2019s how most of us see it. But some of London\u2019s top restaurants take a different view. They impose a \u201ccakeage\u201d charge in much the same way they impose \u201ccorkage\u201d if you want to bring your own wine. In a few cases, cakeage can hit \u00a39 a person.<\/p>\n
Most diners understand corkage. Restaurants make much of their profit on wine so if you bring your own, they get nothing. Besides, they have to wash up all those glasses.<\/p>\n
The reasoning for cakeage is that some restaurants will bake a cake if asked in advance, they have washing up, and some customers will eat cake rather than buy a dessert.<\/p>\n
The case against is that the party may have already spent more than they planned as it\u2019s a celebration, often the cake is tiny and only enough for a token slice and \u2013 most crucially \u2013 restaurants fail to warn customers.<\/p>\n
Slapping hidden charges on at the last moment is bad for repeat visits. And it\u2019s bad for reputation.<\/p>\n
So at least, advertise it \u2013 and waive if for parties where most have already eaten a dessert course.<\/p>\n
Ends<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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